What Is The Health Benefits Of Vitamin A
Vitamin A is a group of fat-soluble vitamin that is naturally present in many foods. It is involved in vision, cellular communication, immune function, and reproduction. It is crucial for healthy vision as an essential component of rhodopsin and because it supports the normal separation and functioning of the conjunctival membranes and cornea, also the immune system.
Vitamin A playing a critical role in helping the heart, lungs, kidneys, bone growth, supports cell growth or reproduction, skin health, and other organs to work correctly.
Vitamin A is a term for a group of compounds that includes provitamin A, carotenoids, and retinol. There are the two different types of vitamin A. They are active(preformed) vitamin A and provitamin A. The active forms of vitamin A to help the nutrient’s critical biological functions.
Vitamin A foods list
The bottom list are the highest in Concentrations of active vitamin A, which also incorporate some provitamin A:
- Fish oils
- Milk
- liver
- eggs
Most dietary provitamin A originates from the following:
- fruits
- tomato products
- leafy green vegetables
- yellow vegetables
- some vegetable oils.
The Table below from National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommends numerous dietary sources of vitamin A. The plant-based foods have provitamin A, and the foods with a variety of ingredients from animals and plants contain both active vitamin A and provitamin A. The foods from animal sources in the Table below contain mostly active vitamin A:
*DV = Daily Value. FDA developed DVs to assist consumers in comparing the nutrient contents of foods and dietary supplements inside the context of all diet. New food labels are not required to list vitamin A content unless vitamin A added to the food. Foods giving 20% or a more significant amount of the DV viewed as high sources of a nutrient, but foods offering lower rates of the DV additionally add to a healthful diet.
Why Do We Need Vitamin A In Our Diets
Many foods naturally got vitamin A which is fat-soluble. It is significant for healthy vision, reproduction, and the immune system. It also assists kidneys, the heart, lungs, and different organs in working appropriately.
Scientists are considering vitamin A to see how it influences health. Here a few instances of what this research has shown. Vitamin A might play a role in the following diseases and disorders: cancer, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and measles.
Cancer
Vitamin A plays a cruicial role in controlling cell development and separation; several studies have inspected the relationship between vitamin A and various types of cancer. However, the connection between serum vitamin A levels or vitamin A supplementation and cancer risk is unclear.
A few prospective and review observational studies in the present and former smokers, as well as in individual who have never smoked, found that higher intakes of vegetables, carotenoids, fruits, or both are associated with a minor risk of lung cancer. Notwithstanding, clinical preliminaries have not indicated that supplemental beta-carotene and/or vitamin A helps prevent lung cancer.
The proof of the connection between beta-carotene and prostate malignant growth is mixed. The significance of these outcomes to individuals who have never smoked or with the impacts of beta-carotene or retinol from multivitamins or food (which regularly have unassuming measures of beta-carotene) isn’t known.
Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a significant cause of significant vision loss in older adults. AMD’s etiology is generally unknown, but the cumulative impact of oxidative stress proposed to assume a job.
Assuming this is the case, supplements containing carotenoids with antioxidant functions, for example, beta-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin, might be valuable for preventing or treating this condition. Lutein and zeaxanthin, specifically, collect in the retina, the tissue in the eye that is harmed by AMD.
The Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS), a vast randomized clinical trial, was conducted and found that participants at high risk of creating advanced AMD. (i.e., those with halfway AMD or those with advanced AMD in one eye) reduced their dander of creating advanced AMD by 25% by taking an everyday supplement or nutrient containing beta-carotene (15 mg). Vitamin C (500 mg [400 IU] dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate), vitamin E (180 mg), zinc (80 mg), and copper (2 mg) for a long time compared to participants taking a placebo.
People who have or are developing AMD should talk to their healthcare provider about taking one of the supplement formulations utilized in AREDS.
Measles
Measles is a significant reason for morbidity and mortality in children in developing countries. About a portion of all measles deaths occur in Africa, but the disease isn’t limited to low-income countries. Vitamin A deficiency is a known hazard factor of severe measles.
The World Health Organization (WHO) prescribes high oral doses (60,000 mcg RAE [200,000 IU]) of vitamin A for few days for children over age 1 with measles who live in areas with a high predominance of vitamin A deficiency.
Vitamin A also decreased the incidence of croup but not pneumonia or diarrhea. However, the mean duration of fever, pneumonia, and diarrhea was shorter in children who received vitamin A supplements.
The body needs vitamin A to keep up the corneas and other epithelial surfaces, the lower serum concentrations of vitamin A associated with measles, particularly in individuals with protein-calorie malnutrition, can prompt blindness. None of the studies assessed in a Cochrane review assessed blindness as an essential result. However, a cautious clinical examination of 130 African children with measles revealed that half of all corneal ulcers in these children, and almost all bilateral blindness, occurred in those with vitamin A deficiency.
Can vitamin A be harmful?
Yes, high intakes of certain types of vitamin A can be harmful.
Getting too much active vitamin A (usually from supplements or certain medications) can cause dizziness, nausea, headaches, coma, and even death. High intakes of active vitamin A in pregnant women can likewise cause congenital disabilities in their babies. The Women who might be pregnant should not take upper portions of vitamin A supplements.
Consuming high measures of beta-carotene or different types of provitamin A can turn the skin yellow-orange, but this condition is harmless. High intakes of beta-carotene don’t cause congenital disabilities or the other more severe effects brought about by getting too much active vitamin A.
Is there any interactions with vitamin A that I should know about?
Yes, vitamin A supplements can interfere or interact with the medicines you take. Here are some examples:
- Absorption of vitamin A can decrease due to a weight-loss drug or causing low blood levels in some people.
- Several synthetic forms of vitamin A utilized in prescription medicines. Dangerously elevated levels of vitamin A in the blood can be caused by taking these medicines in combination with a vitamin A supplement.
Talk to your doctor, pharmacist, and other healthcare providers about any dietary supplements and medications you take. They can let you know whether those nutritional supplements may interact or interfere with your prescription or over-the-counter medications or if the medicines might interfere with how your body absorbs, uses, or breaks down nutrients
Conclusion
People should get a large portion of their nutrients from food, prompts the federal government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Foods contain minerals, vitamins, dietary fiber, and other substances that benefit health. Fortified foods in some cases and nutritional supplements may give nutrients that otherwise might consaume in less-than-recommended amounts. For more data about building a healthy diet, refer to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (https://health.gov/our-work/food-nutrition/2015-2020-dietary-guidelines/guidelines/chapter-1/healthy-eating-patterns/ )and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate(https://www.choosemyplate.gov/ ).
I must commend your ability to put together this enlightening and educating information about Vitamin A. This shows that you did a thorough job on the subject matter, bringing out the reasons why it’s needed and hi of it can affect is when high levels of Vitamin A are taken. I also like the fact that you added that people should get a large portion of their nutrients from food, as foods contain minerals, vitamins, dietary fiber, and other substances that benefit health. Thanks so much
Juliet
Yes, it was a very tough to compile it. I did it to answer the question “What is the health benefits of vitamin A” that I was asked by some of the members of the public. Thanks for visiting my post and living a comment.
Vitamin A is really a great vitamin and I can only imagine the health benefits attached to its usage. Truthfully, vitamin A is a great one for the health of our body. To be honest, I like how you have simplified all of these out here and if I can, I will share out with friends too so they can also know the benefits attached to its usage. Great post!
Rodarrick
I would really appreciate if you share it, the post’s intentions is to spread awareness as much as I possible can. Thanks for visiting my post and your comment.
Thanks for this post on vitamin A Lucky. I enjoyed getting information about the foods that contain vitamin A. And I was specially drawn to the part were you wrote about AMD and vision lose. I’m in my mid fifties, the last time I went for an eye test one eye was degenerating badly. I might need more vitamin A in my meals.
Yes, you need to increase your vitamin A intake, but don’t over do it. Too much vitamin A is also going to give more other negative health issues. You need just enough not too much. Thanks for visiting my website and leaving comment.
Hi Lucky,
Really great post about the vitamin As health benefits. I usually get my vitamin A from eggs and vegetables.
I did not know that you could have too much vitamin A and the side effects are all fairly common to other ailments. I wonder how people go about recognizing someone has an excess of Vitamin A versus something else.
Thanks for the information!
Anna
Anna
There are signs when you have excess of vitamin A in your blood i.e.: dizziness, headaches, nausea etc. you need to go to the doctor and they’ll recommend a blood test to check what is happening. I hope I had answered your question to your satisfactory. Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving comment.